EXCLUSIVE: More Americans than ever say the US is headed in the wrong direction as Congress’s approval rating remains near record lows, the annual Reagan National Defense Survey found.
According to the survey, only 25% of American adults think the US is headed in the right direction, while a whopping 70% say it’s on the wrong track.
That’s a big change from when the survey was first done in 2018, when only 54% saw the country on the wrong track and 27% said it was going in the right direction.
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An American flag flies behind the retired FDNY John J. Harvey fireboat as it sails past lower Manhattan and One World Trade Center while participating in a 9/11 commemorative flotilla on the Hudson River on Sept. 10, 2021, in New York city. (Gary Hershorn/Getty Images)
Only 5% said they have a “great deal” of confidence in Congress with 21% saying they have “some” confidence. 26% said they had “a little” confidence, while 43% said they had “not much.”
Those numbers also represent a significant drop in Americans’ views of the legislative branch of the federal government. In 2018, 39% said they had either a “great deal” or “some” confidence in Congress, while 28% said “a little,” and 43% said “not much.”
When asked which problem facing the country is the most important, inflation and the price of gas and groceries came in at 16%, related to jobs and the economy.
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Birds fly near the US Capitol in Washington, US, October 4, 2021. (REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque/File Photo)
Politics and partisanship followed at 10%, with corruption and incompetent leaders (9%) and immigration (5%) rounding out the top five.
Americans have also expressed deep concern about several other issues, including the threat of a conventional military attack against the country. 62% said they were concerned about such an attack while 25% said they were not.
85% said they were concerned about a potential cyberattack, 81% about a potential terrorist attack and 87% about political divisions in the US leading to violence.
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On national defense, 55% of Americans say the US relies too much on non-allied countries for materials needed for national security, compared to 16% who say no, and 18% who say it does. “it depends.”
Regarding domestic manufacturing capacity for the US to produce its own materials for national defense, 69% said more is needed.
Additionally, 70% said more domestic manufacturing capacity is needed for the country to increase production to meet needs in the event of a crisis.
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The results come as part of the survey’s 6th annual and 10th Reagan National Defense Forum. It included the participation of 2,506 US adults surveyed from Oct. 27 to Nov. 5.
